US First Lady Jill Biden visits Egypt to promote 'women empowerment' amid human rights concerns

US First Lady Jill Biden has landed in Cairo on Thursday as part of a two-day trip to Egypt aimed at "empowering women and youth".

She was greeted at the airport by Egypt’s First Lady Entissar Amer and school children waving American flags. 

Biden is expected to meet and dine with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. 

Her trip to Egypt comes after being in the region to attend the Jordanian royal wedding, ahead of her tour of North Africa and Europe, with Egypt being the first stop.

The First Lady’s trip will allegedly focus on the empowerment of youth and women, as well as “reaffirm [America’s] commitment to strengthen our partnerships and advance our shared priorities in the region”, according to her spokesperson Vanessa Valdivia. 

The US and Egypt have shared strong relations since the 1970s when in 1979 Egypt became the first Arabic-speaking country to sign a peace deal with Israel. It has since received around $1.3 billion in US military aid every year.

Since Sisi came to power in a brutal military coup against the democratically elected president Mohamed Morsi, it has become one of the worst states on earth for human rights abuses.

This includes the policing of women’s “morality’ and persecuting high-profile young women on social media, as well as rape victims who discuss their experiences publicly. 

Additionally, the Egyptian regime has indefinitely detained and sentenced to death hundreds of youths in what human rights groups say is for arbitrary or political motivations. 

Jill's husband came into office claiming he would hold Sisi to account for his human rights abuses. However, so far such accountability from the US president has yet to materialise. 

Biden’s visit coincides with the news that Egyptian poet Galal El-Behairy has been on hunger strike for over 80 days after 5 years of unlawful detention.

PEN International claims the poet is in prison solely for his critical writings against Egyptian authorities. El-Behairy is one of an estimated 60,000 political prisoners in Egypt.

It is not known if Biden will bring up any of these issues during her meeting with Sisi.